Opinion

Seeds Canada amalgamation plan sidelines independent seed growers

No one can deny the importance of seed – to farmers and agriculture, and also to food security and society at large. The Seed Synergy groups are positioning themselves to not only influence, but replace the public regulator. If Seed Synergy’s amalgamation plans succeed, the independent seed grower will soon be a thing of the past, and democratically accountable public regulation process will be turned inside out, with self-interested corporations regulating farmers instead.

NFU asks necessary questions

Calls for increased transparency, clear guardrails on spending, and a basic appreciation for the economic realities facing our farmers should be enthusiastically welcomed in a province that clearly values the benefits farms bring to our communities.

Where Your Money Goes Matters

The National Farmers Union (NFU) and most Islanders were relieved when the federal and provincial governments took quick action to address COVID-19. The measures put in place helped curb the

Food and Agriculture – Lessons from the Pandemic

With the current corona virus crisis taking place on our planet, as farmers and as consumers, we should be ready to support health authorities everywhere in the world. This is

Coronavirus: Another layer of anxiety for farmers

We need to stop the viral threat of the industrial model of agriculture to farmers and to the land. Let’s stop saying, “when we get back to normal ...” The normal is pretty disastrous for farmers and the land. We can do better than the ‘normal’. Let’s find new ways together

Will Canada’s grain farmers be collateral damage in the rush to pass Bill C-4?

Bill C-4 included a series of omnibus style amendments to the Canada Grain Act that affect the Canadian Grain Commission which were not negotiated in CUSMA and have nothing to do with implementing the trade deal.

Who’s in Charge of Agricultural Policy?

While harvest will take top billing in farmers’ minds as we put in the long hours that lie ahead of us, other issues have to be considered. Two of the

Canada has lost credibility and grain customer trust thanks to deregulation

With the end of the Canadian Wheat Board, grain companies are now in a position to take huge profits out of the Canadian prairies. Both the Harper and Trudeau administrations have played right into their hands by destroying Canada’s international credibility that made customers specify “source: Canadian.”

Farmers’ right to seed is a matter of principle

by Ann Slater Last December the United Nations adopted the Declaration on the Rights of Peasants and Other People Working in Rural Areas. This declaration was brought forward by La

Op-Ed Seed Synergy and Value Creation — A Solution in Search of a Problem

Given the health and vigor of Canada’s public plant breeding system, and farmers’ willingness to step up and help to enhance and improve it, it appears that AAFCs “Value Creation" initiative is an unwanted solution to a manufactured problem.